


Waiting On A Friend

by MaxMattel666



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Coach Washijo is the absolute worst, Comfort, Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, Family Feels, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Friendship, Goshiki is Baby, Hurt/Comfort, Intimacy, M/M, Male Friendship, Movie Night, Original Character(s), Platonic Cuddling, Protective Tendou Satori, Protective Ushijima Wakatoshi, Sharing Clothes, Sharing a Bed, Sleepy Cuddles, Stuffed Toys, Tendou has a good family, Tendou has a stuffed possum, Ushijima and Tendou are the best senpais and they love Goshiki, established Ushijima Wakatoshi/Tendou Satori, platonic intimacy, ushiten
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:14:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24221155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaxMattel666/pseuds/MaxMattel666
Summary: Shiratorizawa Academy is giving its students a long weekend and Tendou is excited to go home. But Goshiki? Not so much.!!!Now featuring accompanying art!!!
Relationships: Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Comments: 22
Kudos: 571





	Waiting On A Friend

**Author's Note:**

  * For [handsonmyeyes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/handsonmyeyes/gifts).



> Okay this fic is totally based on my best friend and I's head canons. Plus, Goshiki is absolute baby who doesn't get the recognition he deserves and there just needs to be more Shiratorizawa content. Please leave a comment if you enjoyed! 
> 
> The beautiful art was done by @hands-on-my-eyes on tumblr, check it out! https://hands-on-my-eyes.tumblr.com/image/618497123976183808

“You going home this weekend, Goshiki?” Tendou asked with a wide grin. Shiratorizawa had granted its students a long weekend in celebration of the upcoming holiday. Tendou was happy to be heading home for a few days. He had a handful of siblings to get home to that he missed, and his boyfriend, Ushijima would be joining too. His parents absolutely adored the wing spiker and were completely over the moon that their son had made a close friend after having such a tough time in elementary and middle school.

“Oh um, no. My parents travel a lot for work so they won’t be home this weekend. I’ll probably just stay in the dorms...” Goshiki trailed off, becoming uncharacteristically quiet as he wrung his hands awkwardly and bit the inside of his cheek. He hoped his upperclassman would drop the subject.

“Are your folks gone a lot?” Tendou asked, an eyebrow raised. He didn’t really know much about his kouhai’s home life. Tendou was one of four kids. Three of them were adopted, including him, and his parents were a little on the older side.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Goshiki replied, looking visibly uneasy.

This intrigued Tendou more. Goshiki always seemed so upbeat and sure of himself, but suddenly the first year looked very small. The redhead scanned the first year’s face but was unable to decipher what it was that his friend was feeling.

“You could always come over to my house, I’m sure my parents wouldn’t mind. Plus, they already like you,” the redhead offered. He didn’t want his protege to be alone.

“It’s a long weekend though, and I don’t want to be a bother. I know you’ve got a lot of siblings and Ushijima-san is going too,” Goshiki replied. He had spent a handful of times at the Tendou household, usually having been invited over for lunch on Sundays. Tendou’s family didn’t live too far away from the Shiratorizawa campus, while Goshiki’s family lived about two hours north by train. Tendou’s family was lively and warm, rambunctious in a way that Goshiki had never experienced before.

Goshiki thought fondly about the time he had spent with the middle blocker and his family. Tendou was a middle child out of four. His parents were on the older side. They had one biological child, Tendou’s older brother who was at university. Tendou and his two younger siblings, twin girls, were adopted and only a year younger than Goshiki.

“Are you going to be alright here by yourself though?” Tendou asked, pulling Goshiki away from his thoughts.

“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me, really. I can take care of myself,” Goshiki smiled weakly.

“Okay. Take care of yourself, yeah? The weekend will be over sooner than you know it,” Tendou responded tentatively.

“Thank you, Tendou-san. I’ll make sure to practice a lot this weeked, and get even better, I promise! Say hello to your family for me!” Goshiki said , sounding forcefully excited.

“I’ll make sure to say hi for everybody for you, Tsutomu,” Tendou smiled as he patted his teammates shoulder affectionately.

Something felt a little off to Tendou, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. Something just felt wrong, like he shouldn’t be leaving his kouhai alone, but he knew he had plans with his family and his boyfriend that he couldn’t just work his way out of. Plus he could tell that Goshiki was uncomfortable talking about his family from the way his shoulders held tension and his brow wrinkled.

“I’ll make sure to practice a lot!” Goshiki assured with a forced smile.

The statement made Tendou feel a little unsettled. He didn’t want Goshiki to push himself too hard. He knew how badly the dark haired boy wanted to be the next ace, and hardly anyone had a work ethic that could match Goshiki’s, but still Tendou worries that his friend would overwork himself.

“Text me if you need anything, okay?” Tendou asked, squeezing Goshiki’s shoulder in a reassuring manner.

“Okay!” Goshiki agreed with wide eyes. But even his enthusiasm couldn't curb the nervousness Tendou felt for his underclassman.

The redhead ruffled Goshiki’s hair, making the first year’s bangs stick up in all different directions before saying his goodbyes for the weekend. As soon as Tendou left the room to go pack, Goshiki felt an uncomfortable loneliness settle over him. Something just felt off without Tendou’s presence. Goshiki missed his teammates desperately, even if they hadn’t all left yet. It was going to be a long weekend.

Goshiki pulled his comforter around him, tucking his chin under the soft quilt. He thought about Tendou’s family, how warm and eccentric they all were, and then he thought about his own parents who barely texted him but once a week, if that. It didn’t even hurt Goshiki anymore, he had come to expect their disinterest. But even though Goshiki had normalized his family situation, it didn’t mean that it hurt any less when he watched his friends go home to their own parents. Goshiki curled himself into his comforter and fell asleep thinking about the kind of affection he was starved for. It made sense why the first year wanted to be Shiratorizawa’s ace so badly. Goshiki wanted to be noticed, he wanted to be recognized as worthy enough and good enough to captivate his parent’s attention, but his efforts hadn’t paid off despite his acceptance to the prestigious Shiratorizawa academy and his position as a starter even as a first year.

The thought made Goshiki burrow into his comforter more, pulling the blanket up over his head as he thought about his room at home and the empty kitchen that he knew would be waiting even if he had gone back for the weekend. Goshiki took deep and steadying breaths as he tried to remind himself that the weekend would pass quickly. He already missed the way Tendou would ruffle his hair when he made a good spike during practice, and he especially missed the way Ushijima would offer up a half smile smile when he served especially well.

The future ace fell asleep thinking about how he could make his senpai’s proud. If Goshiki couldn’t impress his parents, maybe he could be good enough for Tendou and Ushijima. It felt like a far stretch, but just maybe their approval would be good enough to start to feel the hole Goshiki felt in his chest.

A quick twenty minute train ride and the third year couple was only a few blocks away from Tendou’s family home. They walked the rest of the short journey hand in hand, Tendou happily musing about funny stories his siblings had told him and what he thought his mom would be making for dinner. It was a common occurrence for Ushijima to visit his boyfriend’s family, who were always more than eager to host their son’s first true friend.

As the two boys entered the house and kicked off their shoes, they were quickly met with the trademark loudness that came along with visiting Tendou’s family. Tendou’s mother was in the kitchen, humming to herself as she chopped vegetables while his father was preoccupied with a book on the couch. Tendou’s older brother was out of sight, probably having elected to stay in his room rather than face the racket his younger sisters were making. At the table, twins Hiroto and Haruto were fighting over something in one of the girls’ phones, with Hiroto holding the device high over her head.

“Hi guys,” Ushijima replied with a slight wave. Going to Tendou’s house always involved a warm and very lively welcome.

“Ushijima-san! Ushijima-san!” The twins chirped, opting to cease their fight in favour of vying for the ace’s attention. They were in their last year of middle school and seemed utterly fascinated by their brother’s seemingly stoic boyfriend.

“Come look at the project I made for my art class!” Haruto exclaimed, moving to tug on Ushijima’s jacket.

“No, I want to show off my serve! I’ve been working really really hard on it!” Hiroto interjected, elbowing her sister in the side.

“Oy! Hiro, Haru, hands off, get your own Wakatoshi-kun,” Tendou teased as he pulled his boyfriend away from his overexcited younger siblings.

“Hey now, let the boys settle in before you start pestering them,” Tendou’s mother scolded with a bit of a laugh.

“Welcome home, Satori,” she said, giving her son a quick hug.

“Always nice to see you too, Ushijima-kun,” Tendou’s father added from where he was sitting on the couch with a book.

“I’ll call you two down when dinner is ready,” Tendou’s mother said, turning her attention back onto the food she had been preparing.

“Okay, sounds good mom. We’ll just be upstairs,”

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, Satori!” Tendou’s brother Kenta called, peeking his head out of his bedroom.

Tendou rolled his eyes and grabbed a hold of his boyfriend's arm, leading them upstairs where they would cuddle in Tendou’d childhood bed until they were called down for food about an hour later. The Tendou family plus Ushijima sat together around the large dining table making casual conversation with the occasional joke or jive, which was usually a result of the siblings picking on one another. Tendou and Ushijima sat on one side of the table next to each other while Tendou’s older brother and two younger twin sisters sat opposite of them. At either head of the table sat Tendou’s parents.

Tendou’s mother noticed the way her youngest son was fidgeting in his seat, and she eyed him curiously. While it wasn’t uncommon for him to sway back and forth or fidget a little, she could tell that there was some sort of nervous energy about him and she wasn’t exactly wrong. Something had been bothering the middle blocker but he wasn’t sure what. Something in his mind just couldn’t seem to settle down, it was like he was forgetting something.

“Everything alright, Satori?” She asked thoughtfully, ignoring the chatter from the other end of the table where the twins were squabbling for Ushijima’s attention once again.

“Yeah okaa-san, I’m okay,” Tendou replied with a half smile.

Ushijima frowned at the comment. Tendou had been uncharacteristically quieter than usual since they had sat down to eat, especially considering that he seemed to get even more boisterous when he was around his family. The redhead had even been quiet when the two were in his room upstairs. Tendou usually was able to fill their comfortable silence quite easily, but that evening something just seemed off.

“Are you nervous about graduation? It’s still a few months away,” Tendou’s dad interjected. Truth be told, Tendou had not really thought that much about graduation. It still seemed like a far off concept, not something waiting just around the corner.

“Ah, I’m not too worried yet,” Tendou answered with a shrug.

“Have you decided who will be captain next year, Wakatoshi-kun?”

“I think it’s more up to coach than me,” the wing spiker replied.

“How’s Goshiki? Is he home for the weekend too?” Tendou’s mother asked. She was quite fond of the first year that her son had seemed to have taken under his wing, even though she had only met him on a few occasions. Tendou felt something click into place at the mention of his kouhai’s name. He wondered how Goshiki was faring on campus all alone, suddenly he felt a little guilty for being able to sit around the table with both his parents and all three of his siblings, plus Ushijima. It didn’t seem fair.

“He’s staying at school this weekend. I guess I thought he usually went home, but he said his parents work a lot and his family lives pretty far…” Tendou trailed off, pushing the food on his plate around idly as he spoke.

“Oh, well, he could always come stay here,” Tendou’s father suggested.

“I offered, but he said he would be fine and use the weekend to finish up some homework and get a bit more practice in,” Tendou responded.

Under the table he pulled his phone out of his pocket, once again checking to see if Goshiki had responded to his text message asking how he was doing and asking if he had eaten dinner. The middle blocker was starting to get a little worried, but he rationalized with himself that Goshiki was probably caught up in homework or in the shower or eating dinner in the cafeteria. The rest of dinner passed with polite chatter. The twins talked about their high school classes and upcoming entrance exams while Tendou’s older brother Kenta tried to explain what was going on with the business classes.

Being the gentleman he was, Ushijima offered to help wash the dishes after dinner while the others sat down for a movie on the couch. Tendou of course joined him at the sink, with Ushijima scrubbing while Tendou dried. They worked in comfortable silence for a few minutes, shoulders brushing ever so often until Ushijima finally broke the silence.

“You’re worried about Goshiki,” he stated simply.

“Yeah,” Tendou chuckled, feeling a little embarrassed for being caught out. “I guess you could say that. You’re getting much better at reading people now, Wakatoshi-kun.”

“Do you want to go back to school?” Ushijima asked matter of factly.

“I mean, kind of? I didn’t realize he would be all alone. I think he’s kind of lonely... “ Tendou trailed off, distracted by a notification sound on his phone. It wasn’t a text alert tone, but he checked it anyways just in case. It wasn’t Goshiki, it was just his horoscope app. Tendou let out a sigh and chewed at the inside of his cheek. He hadn’t heard from Goshiki since before he and Ushijima had left that afternoon.

“I’m sure he’ll text if he needs anything,” Ushijima reassured, giving his boyfriend’s shoulder a slight squeeze.

“I don’t think Tsutomu knows how to ask for what he needs,” Tendou sighed as he stared down at the bowl in his hands. Something inside him felt unsettled knowing that their kouhai was all alone in the dorms. “Maybe we should go back?”

Ushijima took a deep breath, pausing so that he could search for the right words to say. “Your family wants to spend time with you though, they’re important,” the ace said gently as he passed the last plate to Tendou.

“I know, I know. I just worry…” Tendou trailed off as he dried the dish absentmindedly.

“How about we go back tomorrow night, hmm? After dinner?” Ushijima suggested thoughtfully.

“Yeah,” the redhead agreed, “I think that sounds like a good idea.”

Back at Shiratorizawa, Saturday afternoon found Goshiki flinging himself into a gruelling solo practice in the gym. The future ace had been working on his jump serve when he was suddenly interrupted by the sound of the main doors opening.

“What are you still doing here? Shouldn’t you be at home?” Washijo-sensei’s voice cuts through the quiet of the gym.

“Oh, um, my parents are busy out of town this weekend so…” Goshiki replied, feeling both a little exposed and caught off guard.

“Ah, well that will give you some time to practice your serves, they need work anyways,” Washijo-sensei commented as he gave the first year a once over.

“Yes, coach,” Goshiki replied, his eyes catching the floor.

The coach stood by the wall and watched Goshiki for a few more minutes as he tossed the ball up and practiced serve after serve. His arms ached, he had been in the gym by himself for at least an hour now.

Goshiki could feel a heavy tension settle over the gym even though it was only him and his coach. The old man’s eyes narrowed in on him, scrutinizing every move and twist of Goshiki’s body. He could just barely hear the coach muttering to himself under his breath, but not making another out right comment until the man turned to make his way to the exit.

“If you’re going to practice, do it right. There’s no point in practicing if you’re going to be sloppy about it.” Goshiki felt his feet hit the ground before he could even swing to make the serve. His coach’s words rushed through him like a bone chilling breeze, but it didn’t stop there.

“If your parents don’t want you home, at least make some use of your time. You can’t be Shiratorizawa’s ace if you don’t put in the work, Goshiki, you know that.”

With that the door closed, Washijo-sensei was gone, and Goshiki felt like the wind had been knocked right out of him. His head was swimming. What was he doing wrong? He had been studying his teammates' serves, Ushijima especially, and he was trying his best. But what really made Goshiki’s start to panic was what coach Washijo had said about his family.

Goshiki’s parents didn’t outright tell him that they didn’t want him home, they never would have of course. Over the years they had developed a knack for letting their only son down gently, to the point where Goshiki was no longer disappointed by their absence and lack of interest in his life. a quiet winding down of their involvement. This time they had merely said they would be out of town that weekend, but then again, they were out of town most weekends.

To be honest, Goshiki wasn’t terribly close with his parents and the wing spiker had grown up relatively lonely. There were many nights in middle school where Goshiki would return home after volleyball practice to an empty house and a note on the kitchen table. He would spend countless hours at the gym, practicing and practicing hoping that one day he would be good enough to convince his parents to finally attend one of his games, but they never did. They were always too busy, was he really that uninteresting? The thought made his stomach churn.

So when Goshiki was offered a spot at Shiratorizawa Academy, an all boys boarding school, he jumped at the chance. He initially hadn’t been too keen on the idea of living with a roommate but when he realized that he would no longer have to spend the majority of his evenings alone, Goshiki’s mind became made up.

His phone vibrated on the bench to the side of the court and a text message flashed across the screen. Goshiki took a deep breath and picked up his phone, it seemed that he had a handful of unread messages from Tendou. Some were from that morning and some were from the evening before. He moved to open them but stopped himself. He didn’t want to interfere with the older boy’s time with his family and boyfriend, so instead Goshiki pulled on his track jacket and tucked the phone into his pocket. His coach’s words replayed over and over in his head, ‘there’s no point in practicing if you’re going to be sloppy about it.

He trudged into the locker room, his feet felt as heavy as lead. He was absentmindedly rummaging through his locker, shoving the majority of its contents back into his gym back when his eyes began to drift. Just a few feet to the left were Ushijima and Tendou’s, next to each other of course. Goshiki took a few light steps over, tip-toeing like somehow one of them was about to walk into the locker room even though rationally he knew they were a whole train ride away. Tendou’s locker was closed, the built in lock keeping it shut. Ushijima’s locker, on the other hand, was left the slightest bit ajar. Shiratorizawa’s ace had a bit of a habit of never remembering the combination to his locker, and so typically opted to leave it open. It wasn’t like anyone typically left their things in the locker room after practice anyways. But still, Goshiki couldn’t help but reach out and pull it open. As to be expected, the locker was mostly empty, save for a crumpled piece of clothing on the top shelf. Goshiki raised an eyebrow, Ushijima didn’t seem like the type of person to purposefully leave things in his locker, maybe he had just forgotten it after their last practice before the break.

Goshiki reached for the item and pulled it down, unfolding it in his hands and realized that it was a large navy sweatshirt. Upon inspection, Goshiki decided that it wasn’t dirty, and Ushijima had probably brought it as a change of clothes for after practice but had forgotten to slip in on. Thinking about his upperclassman and friend, Goshiki felt a little comforted and squeezed the soft fabric between his hands. He missed Ushijima and he missed Tendou too, even though they had only been apart for a day and a half. The locker room was eerily quiet and the dorms were just the same without the usual ruckus of the volleyball team and other students. Goshiki quickly stuffed the sweatshirt into his gym bag and headed back to his dorm, hoping that Ushijima wouldn’t be missing his sweatshirt that weekend.

The room was dark when he finally drug himself back. His roommate too had gone home for the weekend, like the majority of the other students had. Goshiki gathered up his things and hit the showers, hoping that the hot water might clear his mind a little bit. Once he was showered and back in his room, Goshiki slipped into a comfortable pair of pajama bottoms and Ushijima’s sweatshirt. It hung off of Goshiki quite baggily, even though he was nearly six feet tall. Where Goshiki was slender and lean, Ushijima was broad and muscular. The arms on the sweatshirt fell low on Goshiki’s arms, the cuffs covering his hands. The hood pooled around his neck so he opted to put it up. Goshiki was thankful that he had been correct in the assumption that the sweatshirt was clean. It smelled like the nice detergent Ushijima used instead of the generic brand that was kept stocked in the laundry room of their dormitory and Goshiki felt comforted with the familiar scent now on his own skin.

His body felt heavy, like he had been cut open and filled with sand. Even more so because Ushijima’s sweatshirt somehow felt like a weighted blanket. His shoulders hung low but at least he felt warm and safe, bundled up in the large sweatshirt. He thought about going to the cafeteria to get dinner but couldn’t bring himself to sit down there alone again. Sure there were bound to be a few other boys eating there like the previous night, those who also couldn’t go home, but Goshiki didn’t know any of them well enough to ask to share a meal. The future ace bit back a defeated whimper as he climbed into bed and pulled his covers up around his shoulders. The oversized sweatshirt bunched around his waist as he tossed and turned to get comfortable. He pulled his pillow into his arms and squeezed it until it was nearly flat, twisting the soft fabric of the pillow cover under his fingers as he began to let out small sobs. He wished the weekend would go by sooner.

Goshiki only had about an hour of quiet tucked away in his bed before the door swung open. He sat up and rubbed at his eyes as he had almost fallen asleep. Was his roommate back already? It was only Saturday night afterall.

“Goshiki!” Tendou called out, happy to find the door to their kouhai’s room was unlocked.

“T-Tendou?” Goshiki looked down, instantly spotting the familiar redhead who had invaded his dorm. He must have forgotten to lock the door. Tendou looked up at his teammate curiously, noticing that he was swamped in an oversized sweatshirt that looked vaguely familiar and his eyes looked red and puffy. Goshiki was wrapped up in his comforter atop his bunk, only his face peeking out from behind the hood that was pulled over his head.

“I thought you weren’t coming home, err- back until Sunday evening,” Goshiki squeaked, startled by the middle blocker’s sudden appearance in his room.

“Yeah well, I got to see my siblings and my parents and stuff already. Plus I was worried you’d be lonely stuck here in the dorms all by yourself, and you didn’t reply to my text messages so I had to make sure you didn’t die or something,” Tendou shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant. He could tell Goshiki didn’t want to be worried after.

“You didn’t have to do that! I wouldn’t want to get in the way of you spending time with your family,” Goshiki defended, he felt guilty for making his senpai worry.

“Well, you’re sort of like my family too, you know? We’re teammates after all,” Tendou smiled. What he hadn’t expected was for Goshiki’s eyes to well up with tears at his remark.

“Oh no! No, Goshiki, please don’t cry, I’m sorry,” Tendou sputtered, unsure of what to do.

“Sorry,” Goshiki sniffled, rubbing at his red eyes with a sweatshirt covered hand. It had been a long day and an emotional one at that, so hearing a comment so nice only pushed him over the edge again.

“Is that mine?” Ushijima finally interjected.

“Oh uhhh,” Goshiki’s eyes went wide when he realized that his captain was acting about the sweatshirt he was currently wearing. “I um, I found it in the laundry room so I thought it might’ve been part of the lost and found, I didn’t realize it was yours, really!” Goshiki lied, stumbling over his words. His cheeks were flushed pink with embarrassment. The future ace most certainly did not find the sweatshirt in the laundry room and instead had very sneakily taken it from his upperclassman’s gym bag only just a few hours ago.

“You can keep it,” Ushijima replied with a nod. If it made Goshiki feel better, then it was no loss to him.

“Wakatoshi-kun and I thought we could have a weekend home with you, here, in the dorms!” Tendou exclaimed. The fact that Goshiki had essentially stolen one of his boyfriend’s sweatshirts didn’t phase him, after all he knew how much Goshiki admired their captain.

“We can go to our room,” Tendou offered.

Goshiki nodded furiously, that sounded incredibly nice. He untangled himself from his covers and crawled down the ladder out of his bunk. He felt a little bit embarrassed having been caught wearing Ushijima’s sweatshirt and instinctively wrapped his arms around his waist, drawing in on himself.

“Come on, no time to waste!” Tendou exclaimed as he grabbed a hold of one of Goshiki’s hands and pulled him towards his and Ushijima’s shared room.

Tendou gathered up the blankets from his bed and brought them down to the bottom bunk that Ushijima occupied. Goshiki stood idly by the door, rocking his weight back and forth from one foot to the other as Tendou laid out the blankets and pulled what seemed like an armful of snacks from his backpack.

“My mom basically filled my bag with food, and now I’m glad she did. You haven’t eaten dinner, right?”

Goshiki shook his head in confirmation, once he left the gym he had gone straight to his room. He didn’t want to face eating at a table alone in the cafeteria, it somehow felt pitiful while all the other students were home with their families.

“Here,” Tendou said, holding out a blue tupperware. Inside were a couple of onigiri. Tendou’s mom must have made them herself. Goshiki’s eyes threatened to tear up at the small but kind gesture. He couldn’t remember the last time his own parents had offered him homemade food and Shiratorizawa’s cafeteria just couldn’t compare.

“Thank you, Tendou-san,” Goshiki’s voice cracked.

“Eat up! If you’re still hungry I’ve got melon pan and some other stuff too. I’ll get the movie set up,” Tendou smiled.

“You can come sit down,” Ushijima spoke up, patting a spot next to him on the bed. Goshiki smiled wide and rushed to take a seat next to the older boy. The sweatshirt smelled characteristically like Ushijima, like pine and nice laundry detergent. It was comforting.

“I’m so sorry about taking your sweatshirt, let me just wash it first and then I’ll give it back to you,” the first year said, stumbling over his words.

“You can keep it, really. Satori steals my clothes all the time,” Ushijima reassured with a soft smile. Goshiki had to bite back a strangled happy noise as he felt heat rising in his cheeks. Wearing Ushijima’s sweatshirt provided him with a sense of security he had never felt before.

“Thank you,” Goshiki whispered, his eyes locked on his hands that were cradled in his lap, palms covered by the sweatshirt’s too-long sleeves. The material of the sweatshirt felt lived in and soft against his skin at the same time.

“Alright, I think we’re ready to go!” Tendou cheered, plugging in his laptop to their projector. Truly one of the best investments he had made for the dorm room. The middle blocker hopped into bed with his teammates, settling on the other side of Goshiki so that the first year was tucked between Ushijima and Tendou. Tendou’s knee knocked against Goshiki’s, but the younger boy didn’t flinch or pull away from the contact and it made Tendou’s chest feel warm.

“Thank you guys, for doing this for me…” Goshiki whispered. His gaze was laser focused forward, afraid that if he turned to look at either of his teammates that the tears would start flowing.

“Anything for our miracle boy Tsutomu,” Tendou mused as he rubbed a few comforting circles across Goshiki’s upper back.

Goshiki felt the heat in his cheeks flare up again, it felt really nice. The simple gesture made him feel grounded and safe. Goshiki leaned into Tendou’s upper arm as the three of them watched the movie together. The warmth radiating off the bodies on either side of him calmed Goshiki down, he felt settled in a way that he hadn’t since the weekend started. Tendou passed snacks between them, keeping a careful eye on Goshiki to make sure he ate enough as he hadn’t had dinner. The affectionate way Tendou looked after Goshiki made his head dizzy, but in a good way and suddenly the first year didn’t feel the hollowness that usually resided deep in his chest. Every once in a while Tendou’s hand would brush against Goshiki’s back, grounding the first year in a way he had never experienced before. Goshiki could feel a warm and comforting pressure just touching his back, and he finally noticed that Tendou and Ushijima were holding hands behind him and the realization that his upperclassmen felt so comfortable around him only made Goshiki feel that much better.

It wasn’t long before Goshiki started to drift off, comfortably snuggled between his teammates. He swayed back and forth between then, his head dipping sleepily from side to side. Eventually Goshiki could barely keep his eyes open, which resulted in him leaning half asleep on Tendou, his face pressed into the redhead’s shoulder. Though how Goshiki managed to find said position comfortable would remain a mystery. More than anything, it was probably because he felt sonsafe huddled between the two older boys.

“Do you want to stay here tonight, with us?” Ushijima asked, gently shaking Goshiki’s shoulder to garner his attention.

“Hmm?” The first year hummed sleepily as he nuzzled against Tendou’s arm. “Oh!” He helped, suddenly realizing he had nearly fallen asleep on his upperclassman. “Yes, no, um- it’s okay. I can go back to my own room, I don’t want to be a bother,” Goshiki admitted. He already felt a little guilty for making them worry about him, Tendou especially.

“What are you talking about? You’re never a bother when you’re with us, Tsutomu!” Tendou reassured with a wide smile as he ruffled Goshiki’s bowl cut. The middle blocker made a mental note to ask Goshiki if he wanted a trim later.

Goshiki felt stunned at the spoken response. It was one thing to spend a nice time with one’s teammates, but it was another thing altogether to be told so forward that he was cared for unconditionally. The unfamiliar feeling in his chest bubbled up, warm and a little odd, but it settled comfortably as he realized that Tendou and Ushijima didn’t see him as a burden.

“Here, I’m going to clean up a bit,” Tendou pushed a stuffed animal into Goshiki’s arms. The future asked looked at the plush curiously, trying to figure out exactly what it was he was holding.

“It’s a possum,” Ushijima said, answering the unspoken question. “Satori likes them a lot, I don’t know why.”

“I just think they’re neat!” Tendou chirped happily as he tidied up their snack mess.

“Thank you, Tendou-san. He’s very, um, cute,” Goshiki yawned as he squished the stuffed animal gently in his lap.

The first year held the possum close to his chest, feeling almost overwhelmed at the thought that Tendou trusted him with something so personal. He leaned back against the wall behind him, resting against it as he pulled the blanket up around him. He felt so warm and so, so sleepy. Goshiki was nodding off when he felt large hands guide him to lay down and the blanket behind pulled up under his chin. He wiggled around a bit, trying to get comfy and clutched the stuffed possum tightly.

“Try to get some rest,” Ushijima prompted as he too moved to lay down and get comfortable in his now over occupied bed.

“You’ve gone soft, Wakatoshi-kun,” Tendou whispered as he perched on the edge of his boyfriend’s bed.

“I don’t understand why you insist on sleeping on me. I can’t see how I’m more comfortable than a pillow,” Ushijima commented earnestly. Tendou hardly slept in his own bed anymore, instead opting to sleep with Ushijima in his bed on the bottom bunk most nights.

“Well for one, you’re warm. Sort of like a space heater,” Tendou laughed, his eyes flicking over the scene before him fondly.

Goshiki tossed slightly at the noise, but seemed to be fast asleep. The first year snored softly and was tucked against Ushijima’s left side, curled up like a cat by a radiator.

“See? Even Tsutomu agrees.” Tendou couldn’t help but smile affectionately at the display in front of him, even though it made his heart ache a little to think that Goshiki had probably been deprived of this kind of affection before. Well, if Goshiki’s parents couldn’t show their son how much he was cared for, then Tendou would make sure he and Ushijima did.

“I don’t mind sleeping up top, I know it’ll be a tight squeeze. Sort of like a night off, except not really, I guess,” the redhead whispered.

Ushijima’s brows knitted together in confusion, “...no…” he replied after a pause, a faint pink blush now dusting his cheeks. “Plus, I think Goshiki would be sad if he woke up and you weren’t down here with us,” the ace reasoned.

“Hmm, a very compelling argument, Wakatoshi-kun,” Tendou grinned.

He stood up and flicked off the light before climbing into bed with his boyfriend and their protege. Ushijima slipped his other arm around the redhead, enjoying the pleasant warmth even if he was being used like a big pillow. Tendou laid his head against Ushijima’s chest, content to listen to the steady beating of the taller boy’s heart.

Both Tendou and Goshiki savoured the warmth that seemed to pour off of Ushijima as he held them close against his sides. Tendou was happy to toss a long leg over his boyfriend's waist, pressing his chest against Ushijima’s side. On the slide closest to the wall, Goshiki was curled in on himself for the most part with his knees brought up close to his chest and his face nuzzled into the captain’s side. He had one arm wrapped securely around Tendou’s possum plush while his other hand gripped Ushijima’s t-shirt like if he let go then the other boy would disappear.

“Goodnight, Tsutomu,” Tendou murmured as he reached over Ushijima’s chest and tucked a stray piece of hair out of the sleeping boy’s sleeping face. Goshiki unconsciously leaned into the warm touch. Tendou pulled back and pressed a soft kiss against his boyfriend’s temple, “Goodnight, Wakatoshi.”

“‘Night,” Goshiki sighed. He was half-asleep, his voice muffled by Ushijima’s shirt as he pressed his face against the ace’s torso. The three fell asleep warm and comfortable. It wouldn’t matter when they woke up in the morning with tangled and stiff limbs, and it wouldn’t be a big deal when Goshiki started sleeping over after particularly hard days, and truthfully Ushijima didn’t mind being used like a pillow.


End file.
